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Learn Hardcore Japanese: oyasirazu ga arimasu. - I have a wisdom tooth.

Hardcore Japanese
/Getting treatment at the dentist
/oyashirazu ga arimasu.

oyashirazu ga arimasu.

Word

親おや知しらず　が　あります。oyashirazu ga arimasu.

Meaning

I have a wisdom tooth.

Part of speech

sentence

Pronunciation

Course

Hardcore Japanese

Lesson

Getting treatment at the dentist

Breakdown of oyashirazu ga arimasu.

subject particle

親おや知しらずoyashirazu

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Questions & Answers about oyashirazu ga arimasu.

How do you read 親知らず?

It is usually read おやしらず.

A few notes:

親 = parent
知らず comes from 知る = to know, and here it means not knowing

So the word literally has the image of a tooth that comes in when your parents don’t know / aren’t involved anymore, which is why it means wisdom tooth.

Why is 親知らず written partly in kanji and partly in hiragana?

That is very common in Japanese.

In this word:

親 is written in kanji
しらず is usually written in hiragana as 知らず or しらず

You may see:

親知らず
親不知
sometimes even all hiragana in learner-friendly materials

親知らず is a very standard and natural spelling.

Why is the particle が used here?

Nihon-shiki romanizationwatasi ha tyuugoku kara kimasita

Hepburn romanizationwatashi wa chuugoku kara kimashita

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が marks what exists in sentences with ある / いる.

So in 親知らずがあります, the thing that exists is 親知らず.

A very literal structure is:

wisdom tooth/teeth + exists

That is why Japanese uses が here, even though in English we often translate it as have.

Why does this sentence use あります instead of a verb meaning to have?

Japanese very often expresses have with an existence pattern.

So instead of saying I have a wisdom tooth, Japanese often says something closer to:

There is a wisdom tooth
with the owner understood from context

In everyday Japanese, this is completely normal for possessions, physical features, and body-related things.

Why is it あります and not います?

Because 親知らず is treated as a thing, not as a living creature.

Japanese generally uses:

あります for inanimate things
います for animate things such as people and animals

A tooth is part of the body, but grammatically it is still treated like a thing, so あります is correct.

Where is I in this sentence?

It is omitted.

Japanese often leaves out information that is obvious from context. If the speaker is talking about their own mouth or their dental situation, I does not need to be stated.

So 親知らずがあります can naturally mean:

I have a wisdom tooth
I have wisdom teeth

depending on context.

If you wanted to state it explicitly, you could say:

私は親知らずがあります。

But this can sound a bit less natural in many situations because the I is already obvious.

Does 親知らず mean one wisdom tooth or wisdom teeth in general?

It can mean either, depending on context.

Japanese nouns usually do not change form for singular and plural, so 親知らず can refer to:

one wisdom tooth
wisdom teeth in general

If the exact number matters, Japanese would usually add something else, such as:

親知らずが一本あります = I have one wisdom tooth
親知らずが四本あります = I have four wisdom teeth

Is this sentence natural on its own?

Yes, it can be natural, especially in context.

For example, if someone asks about your teeth, a dentist is examining you, or you are discussing dental problems, 親知らずがあります is perfectly understandable.

However, in many real conversations, Japanese often makes the location or owner clearer, for example:

親知らずがあります。 = I have a wisdom tooth / wisdom teeth.
奥歯のところに親知らずがあります。 = There is a wisdom tooth in the back of my mouth.
親知らずが生えています。 = My wisdom tooth is coming in / has grown in.

What is the difference between 親知らずがあります and 親知らずが生えています?

They are related, but not the same.

親知らずがあります focuses on existence: there is a wisdom tooth / I have wisdom teeth.
親知らずが生えています focuses on the tooth growing in / being erupted.

So:

あります = it exists
生えています = it has come in, is growing, is present as an erupted tooth

If you are talking specifically about whether the tooth has emerged, 生えています is often more precise.

Could は be used instead of が?

Yes, but it changes the nuance.

親知らずがあります is a neutral statement: There is a wisdom tooth / I have wisdom teeth.
親知らずはあります gives 親知らず topic or contrast emphasis, something like:
- As for wisdom teeth, I do have them
- I have wisdom teeth, at least

So が is the more basic choice here.

What level of politeness is あります?

あります is polite, non-past form.

It is appropriate in normal conversation, with strangers, in class, with medical staff, and in many everyday situations.

Related forms:

ある = plain form
あります = polite form
ありません = polite negative
ありました = polite past

So a plain-form version would be:

親知らずがある。

But the sentence you were given is the polite version.

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